{"product_id":"9781472102690","title":"Mammoth Books presents Demonic Dreams: Three Stories by Christopher Fowler, Robert Shearman and Norman Partridge","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eOh I Do Like to Be Beside the Seaside\u003c\/b\u003e - Christopher Fowler\u003cbr\u003eChristopher Fowler explains \"'. . . Seaside' came about firstly because I was commissioned to write a story for the World Horror Convention souvenir book and, as the event was to take place in Brighton, it seemed logical to set a tale on the South coast of England.\u003cbr\u003e\"I had written a fantasy novel, \u003ci\u003eCalabash\u003c\/i\u003e, some years earlier, hinting at the dark madness of such seaside towns, which are the antithesis of their Mediterranean counterparts. I thought of the depressing Morrissey song \"Every Day is Like Sunday\", which captures the awfulness of English resorts.\u003cbr\u003e\"Coincidentally, Kim Newman and I were discussing the inherent creepiness of pantomime dames, and I decided it was time to give vent to my horror of these coastal pleasure domes. I wish I'd thought to include screaming gangs of hen-nighters as well. And I thought it was a nice touch to have everyone in the story telling the hero to 'fuck off' until he finally does.\"\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eFeatherweight\u003c\/b\u003e - Robert Shearman\u003cbr\u003e\"I don't like writing at home much,\" admits the author. \"Home is a place for sleeping and eating and watching afternoon game shows on TV. There are too many distractions. So, years ago, I decided I'd only write first drafts in art galleries.\u003cbr\u003e\"And the best of them all is the National Gallery, in London, a pigeon's throw from Nelson's Column. I can walk around there with my notebook, thinking up stories - and if I get bored, there are lots of expensive pictures to look at. Perfect.\u003cbr\u003e\"A lot of those paintings, however, have angels in them. They're all over the place, wings raised, halos gleaming - perching on clouds, blowing trumpets, hovering around the Virgin Mary as if they're her strange naked childlike bodyguards. And I began to notice. That, whenever the writing is going well, the angels seemed happy, and would smile at me. And whenever the words weren't coming out right, when I felt sluggish, when I thought I'd rather take off and get myself a beer, they'd start to glare.\u003cbr\u003e\"I wrote this story in the National Gallery. Accompanied by a lot of glaring angels. Enjoy.\"\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eLesser Demons\u003c\/b\u003e - Norman Partridge\u003cbr\u003e\"I was surprised to receive an invitation for S.T. Joshi's \u003ci\u003eBlack Wings\u003c\/i\u003e,\" reveals Partridge, \"an anthology of Lovecraftian fiction. Although I knew S.T. admired my work, I've never quite seen myself as a Mythos writer.\u003cbr\u003e\"While I respect H.P. Lovecraft and his contribution to horror, I've never felt that his worldview (or maybe I should say \u003ci\u003euniverse\u003c\/i\u003eview) meshed with mine.\u003cbr\u003e\"In the end, that's what made the story work . . . at least for me. I concentrated on my differences with Lovecraft, and approached the material from a place where Jim Thompson would be more comfortable than HPL. And I'm delighted that so many people have enjoyed the tale - it was a lot of fun to write.\"\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Little, Brown Book Group","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":47144319353072,"sku":"9781472102690","price":0.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0737\/7593\/9824\/files\/9781472102690_p0.jpg?v=1763597317","url":"https:\/\/shop-qa.barnesandnoble.com\/products\/9781472102690","provider":"Barnes \u0026 Noble (DEV)","version":"1.0","type":"link"}